Burlingame Man Sets New Standard in Style

One local man is partaking in an old-fashioned trend, bringing the luxury of custom-made shirts and trousers to Burlingame residents—without the hefty price tag. As one of 600 style consultants nationwide for Dallas-based J. Hilburn Partners, Barry Sellar has been measuring men for custom-fit clothing since November.

Scottish-born Sellar made his foray into the business at the suggestion of a family friend. In a time when less people head to the tailor for custom-made clothing, Sellar and his colleagues make house calls for measurements and then send the information to Portugal or Hong Kong where the clothing is made.

He likens the company to ”Amazon, but with customer service added on, because we’re face to face.”

Sellar said the art of clothes designed specifically for the wearer has declined over the years for a number of reasons.

“That’s disappeared because people are just mass producing,” he said. “It just doesn’t fit right, but they’re used to it.”

However, J. Hilburn Partners employees like Sellar work to remind consumers that wearing correctly-fitted clothes, made to order, is possible and affordable. The shirts run from $79 to $149. The average pair of trousers costs $149, using the same fabrics as top designers such as Ralph Lauren. They are attempting to revive a more slow-paced age, when people took their time having clothing made.

Nowadays, the convenience of department stores has halted the demand for tailors, and Sellar said new customers often tell him of tailors they used to use, who have since retired or moved away and have not been replaced.

“To have one on your door step, literally, it’s a unique business,” he said. “They never need to go back to a shop and get something that may fit them. We physically measure people in their offices and their homes.”

Sellar said ordering clothing using personal measurements reduces wearing an incorrect fit solely due to limited options. Sizes vary from brand to brand and men end up in between sizes by a couple of inches here or there.

“A lot of guys…get fed up with shopping because they kind of pigeon hole you into small, medium or large,” he said.

Sellar said the majority of his clients reside on the Peninsula, work in real estate and sales and are in their 30s and 40s. He has a good client base around Menlo Park and Pal Alto through business connections made by his wife.

Although originally from Scotland, Sellar moved to the Bay Area after meeting his wife at a wedding, to which he wore a kilt.

“I'm an avid Scotsman the more I’m over here,” he said. “People say ‘there goes the Queen of England’ and yes, she is, but she’s got about three other titles and it displaces where Scotland is on the map.”

Scottish displacement aside, Sellar said he enjoys golfing, running and visiting the batting cages in Burlingame.

He enjoys eating out, especially at Mingalaba on Burlingame Avenue. However, come the summer, Sellar said his hobbies are likely to change.

“I think my main hobby is now looking after my wife, as she's going to be giving birth in August,” he said. “I’m thinking of all sorts of Scottish names.”

If you would like to be fit for custom made clothing, you can contact Barry Sellar at barry.sellar@jhilburnpartner.com.